Where Music Comes to Play

Archive for walkman

Sony’s Android-driven Z series Walkman which we talked about earlier is finally ready for launch in the western world.

Some hardware and software specs sure are a bit of a letdown – no MKV or subtitle support for video, no FLAC/Vorbis for audio, only 20 hours audio and 5 hours video battery life, no SD slot, no camera, no GPS, almost no tactile buttons, and so on.

On the other hand, the 1 GHz dual-core Tegra 2 in the X series should be beefy enough for demanding apps, and the included official Android Market makes sure you get said apps as easily as possible onto the device. All is fine on the connectivity front as well, from Wi-Fi B/G/N over Bluetooth 2.1+EDR (A2DP, AVRCP, OPP) to HDMI-out. The Z series sports Sony’s usual S-Master amp and tons of sound enhancements and EQ presets. Let’s hope those are global settings, like on the Cowon D3, so any 3rd party app can access them as well.

Considering Sony’s competition in the Android non-phone market, ranging from various inexpensive Archos devices to Samsung Galaxy Players, the price of the Z sure isn’t the biggest bargain, with the 8 GB model going for $250, the 16 GB one for $280, and the 32 GB bigwig for $330. Remember: no SD slot available.

On a side note, I wonder how that “Eurphoric” typo managed to sneak into Sony’s official press image on the right… I would recommend MP3Tag for future press shots.

AFP reports that Sony’s market share for MP3 players for last month was 47.8% compared to Apple’s 44%. Since the early reign of the cassette Walkman’s that started over 3 decades ago, it looks like Sony is back on top for portable players in Japan. Also on top now for the 10 years of MP3 player.

In a battle for touch screen MP3 players Sony swung for the fences with a premium product with a price to match well above the competition. To those who have the extra cash to spend the premium price may well be justified. These unique to the competition features include YouTube browsing, Slacker Radio (US Only), direct podcast downloads, premium noise canceling headphones, and a semi-useful web browser.

Some of the highlights of this player include an amazing looking OLED screen with a capacitive touch screen with a lightning fast response. You can also expect great sound quality like most of Sony’s other players. Read on for the full in depth look at the Sony X-1000 player.

Sony today announced (translated) the release of the X-1000 for the Japanese market on April 25th. One of the less touted and more interesting aspects in this announcement is the use of Microsoft’s Live search as the main search for the built in NetFront browser (same browser found on the PSP). MS may have landed the search contract but Google can be found on the player in the form of YouTube.

Microsoft is working hard to improve search and the hardest part is just getting people to use it as default or at all for that matter. They have already struck deals with laptop makers such as Lenovo for Live as default, so it makes a lot of sense to make some inroads on portable devices.

The release dates pricing for the US is still to be announced. In Japan however, the 16GB NWZ-X1050 and the 32GB NWZ-X1060 are selling for 40,000 and 50,000 Yen respectively. Converting this puts the player at $400 and $500! Ouch! Though I highly doubt that this will be the US MSRP since the Japanese version includes a 1-seg digital TV tuner, a TV standard we don’t have in the US and will be stripped when it makes it stateside.

Embedded below is the Sony’s own promotional video showing the X-1000 in action. PC World also got a chance to take a look at at this new player if you are looking for some initial opinions.

The A820 series is Sony’s latest and flagship in the Walkman line up. As the head honcho of the family, the A820 is the first to sport Bluetooth audio. Unlike recent Samsung players which support extended Bluetooth features, this Sony only supports Bluetooth audio transfer and control. If you have used any of the more recent Sony Walkmans you will get a near identical experience since the interface and the features are the same. The only new thing here is the addition of Bluetooth, larger screen, and different form factor.

With that said, this review will be slightly abridged since have pretty much covered the majority of the A820 in the A810 and S610 reviews. This review will focus mainly on what makes this player stand out from the other Sony Walkmans.

When the NW-A820 (not to be confused with the NWZ-A820) was first announced in Asia it was said to support video recording through a special video dock. While this hasn’t been confirmed for the NWZ-820, there is still hope for those who want to bring their TV shows with them – the new Sony BDZ-A70 Blu-Ray recorder.

The BDZ-A70 should come as a pleasant surprise for those who were let down when the new PS3 firmware turned out to be lacking the long promised Blu-Ray transfer feature. Even if that feature is still missing on the BDZ-A70 it’s capable of recording TV and transferring the recorded shows directly to a PSP or Sony Walkman. Transfer times are stated to be about 3 minutes for 60 minutes of recorded TV, which isn’t bad at all. It’s definitely a step in the right direction in ways of making electronics compatible with each other, even if it only works for Sony devices. It’s due in Japan on April 30th with a price tag of about $1670.

Sony’s S610 is their low man on the totem pole in the new line of video flash players sporting 2, 4, and 8GB capacities. This is last year’s model but Sony has decided to keep it around to accompany the newer 2.4” screened Bluetooth players. But don’t let the “last year’s model” deter you from purchasing. The S610 is by no means out of date- features, sound quality, and video playback are comparable to most players currently on the market.

If you read the A810 review, you may experience a bit of déjà vu since these two players share similar features and navigation. The S610 may be a good alternative if you are looking for an FM radio and a slightly more compact form factor.

Sony never got too much play on this site since Sony locked all of their MP3 players into their proprietary media player SonicStage. I love their designs, sound quality, and battery life but SonicStage was so unbelievably terrible it kept me from picking up any of their players. Sony finally wised up and joined the rest of the portable music world making their devices MTP, thus being compatible with most media players and music services.

Sony will soon release the A820, an upgraded version with Bluetooth, larger screen, and larger capacities. However, the A810 should not be pushed aside; it is still a very viable MP3 player that will still keep up with anything in its class. It is a great choice for people not needing all the bells and whistles of its newer sibling.

abi Editor's Choice

SanDisk Sansa Clip+

The Clip+ has a fantastic little form factor; somewhat cheap in build quality but very rugged. The interface is simple and relatively straightforward. The features on the Clip are more or less average, however it supports the alternative Rockbox firmware which provides tons of additional options (gapless playback, Replaygain, playlists, Last.fm scrobbling, etc). Read the full review or go ahead and buy it.

Cowon J3

The J3 is a fantastic PMP with a very nice AMOLED screen and tons of features. It sports Cowon's trademark BBE sound enhancements, and offers a customizable user interface with strong support by our user community. You can usually find it at Amazon for the best price - and don't forget to check out our review.

Microsoft Zune HD

Sure, many of us are not big fans of the walled garden, but there are a lot of great things going on with the Zune: sturdy hardware, ultra easy to use user interface, and a media player that is worthy of Editor’s Choice. You can check out our Zune HD review or stop by our Zune forums for the latest info and gossip.

Phonak Audéo PFE

Phonak Audéo PFE offer outstanding clarity and precision; natural, dynamic mids and treble, and decent bass for a single armature in-ear phone. They handle dense, complex music very well. The PFE work well with most acoustic and some electronic music genres, but bassheads might have to look at other alternatives. They're great for sports as well, since they fit very securely. Check out our review.

Hippo VB

The Hippo VB (Variable Bass) offers a serious subwoofer for on the go, right in your head. They don’t just deliver generous quantities of punchy, textured bass, but good audio quality over the whole frequency range with decent clarity and exceptional soundstage. Exchangeable bass ports let you customize their sound to your liking. Read our in-depth Hippo VB review.

Soundmagic E10 / E30

The Soundmagic E10 and E30 are basically right in the middle between the Phonak PFE and Hippo VB - not too analytical sounding, not too bass heavy. The E10 provide a bit more bass, the E30 a bit more clarity. Both come with a very fair price tag considering the sound quality they deliver - a great choice for the audio aficionado on a budget. Read our E10 and E30 reviews for more info.